Our origins can be traced to the Fall of 1916 when a group of community leaders set aside 300 dollars, and donated lumber from the dismantled Court House, to build the first hospital in Fort Myers. That first hospital, Lee County Hospital, a two story, four room, 10 bed, wooden building was the beginning of community health care in our area.

Today, Lee Health consists of four acute care hospitals: Lee Memorial Hospital, HealthPark Medical Center, Gulf Coast Medical Center and Cape Coral Hospital, and two speciality hospitals: Golisano Children's Hospital of Southwest Florida and The Rehabilitation Hospital. With a total of 1426 beds, and over 1 million patient contacts each year, this makes Lee Health the largest public health system in the state of Florida, receiving no direct tax support.

Supported by more than 13,000 dedicated employees and 4,500 volunteers and auxilians, Lee Health remains the bedrock of our community by offering acute care, emergency care, rehabilitative and diagnostic services, health and wellness education, community outreach and advocacy programs throughout the five county region. We continue to invest back into our community to improve facilities, add services and extending care to those who need it most - in their own back yard.

In the nearly 100 years since opening our first hospital, our dedication to our community - the people with whom we live and work - has been at the core of Lee Health's mission, values and strategic planning principles.

Awards

July 2016: Gulf Coast Medical Center has earned the 2016 Labor and Delivery Excellence Award™ from Healthgrades, a leading provider of consumer information about physicians and hospitals.

The local hospital also received five-star ratings (the highest available from Healthgrades) for C-section and vaginal delivery services. The Labor and Delivery Excellence Award places Gulf Coast Medical Center in the top 10% of all hospitals evaluated for the care provided to mothers during labor and delivery.

Gulf Coast Medical Center is one of 118 facilities to earn the Labor and Delivery Excellence Award. According to Healthgrades’ analysis and statistics for 2012-2014 (which is the data used to determine 2016 award recipients), patients treated in hospitals receiving the Labor and Delivery Excellence Award have, on average, a 36.3% lower risk of experiencing complications while in the hospital than if they were treated in hospitals that did not receive the award.

July 2016: Four Lee Hospitals Named 2016 Most Wired for Three Consecutive Years

All four acute care hospitals in Lee Health are among the 2016 Most Wired, according to the 18th Annual Health Care’s Most Wired® survey, released recently by the American Hospital Association’s (AHA) Health Forum. According to the survey, technology is improving the efficiency of care delivery and creating a new dynamic in patient interactions. Cape Coral Hospital, Gulf Coast Medical Center, HealthPark Medical Center and Lee Memorial Hospital have been named Most Wired for the past three years by the AHA Health Forum.

For a full list of winners, visit www.hhnmag.com

White Coat of Quality Award Three Years in a Row

May, 2016 - For three consecutive years, Lee Health has been honored with the Surescripts White Coat of Quality Award which recognizes dedication to continually improving data quality and patient safety in electronic prescribing of medications. The health system is one of only 16 organizations nation-wide to achieve this recognition.

Quality assurance in medication e-prescribing is an essential tool for creating a safer health care system. Medication E-Prescribing electronically communicates prescriptions to a patient’s preferred pharmacy in the community. Rapid communication of prescriptions reduces delays in filling them and improves the quality and continuity of care. Patients are also offered the convenience of picking up their prescriptions at one of four Lee Pharmacy locations upon discharge from Lee Memorial Hospital, HealthPark Medical Center, Gulf Coast Medical Center and Cape Coral Hospital.

Lee Health Hospitals Earn Quality Achievement Awards for Stroke Care

May, 2016 - Gulf Coast Medical Center, Cape Coral Hospital, Lee Memorial Hospital earned the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award. The award recognizes success in implementing excellent care for stroke patients, according to evidence-based guidelines. Additionally, these hospitals were recognized with Target Stroke Honor Roll awards, recognizing exceptional performance in administration the clot busting medication Alteplase, which significantly reduces disability after stroke. Time is brain, so it is very important to administer this drug as quickly as possible when indicated.

To receive the Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award, hospitals must achieve 85 percent or higher adherence to all Get With The Guidelines-Stroke Quality Achievement indicators and 75 percent or higher compliance with six of 10 Get With The Guidelines-Stroke Quality Measures. The Gold Level is awarded for 24 consecutive months of performance achievement.

These measures include aggressive use of medications, preventative treatments, cholesterol reducing drugs and smoking cessation, all aimed at reducing death and disability and improving the lives of stroke patients. The full implementation of acute care and secondary prevention recommendations and guidelines is a critical step in saving the lives and improving outcomes of stroke patients.

Benefits

In addition to competitive compensation, Lee Health employees receive a great benefits package designed to encourage work-life balance and continuous growth and education.

Here's a snapshot of what our package offers:

Employee Referrals

Health insurance

Retirement

Tuition reimbursement

Nursing Internship

Child care centers

Paid time off

Additional benefits such as life, dental and disability

Service awards, celebrations and recognition programs

Flexible work schedules such as PRN/Temporary, Seasonal Months Off program and reduced work schedule options